If you're new here, you may want to subscribe to my RSS feed. Thanks for visiting!

After Milan, we went to Lake Como. This, of course, was pre-George and Amal!

We stayed in the town of Bellagio, in a small pensione overlooking a little courtyard. It was a very cute little place, though I don’t remember much about our time on Lake Como other than the sad news we got from home, and blue flowers.

Calling Home

My teenage sister and a friend of hers had come out to our house in Massachusetts to take care of the house, the dog, and the three cats we had at the time.

We had Augie, a dog I rescued from the pound the day before Thanksgiving the year before in a moment of weakness and poor judgment. She ended up being a great dog, but it was a rough start.

We also had #1’s cat, Sheba, who snored so loud you could hear her from another floor and would have to wake her up sometimes, she snored so loud. Yes, the cat.

Our babies were Bonnie and Clyde, two kittens #1 had rescued when he found them in the wheel well of his car when he was at a friend’s house, I think. They each had double paws – Clyde was my favorite.

In any event, we had only been gone a few days and thought we ought to call home to check in. I also wanted to tell my sister not to drink an expensive bottle of champagne I had in the fridge – it had slipped my mind in the craziness before we left. #toolate

Apparently, I was late on the request – I am sure they had come home from dropping us off at Logan International and popped that bad boy in celebration once they got back.

Whoo hoo! Six weeks on our own!!!

No matter how disappointed I was, the other news they had for us was much worse.

Clyde had been hit and killed by a truck on the busy road behind our property.

Sad Days on Como

All I remember is handing the phone to #1 and sitting down on the stone steps next to the payphone and crying.

#1 and I spent the next 24 hours crying our eyes out. It was raining, too, so it was the perfect weather for our sadness.

I know, Clyde was just a cat, but we loved our animals and he was our baby. I was devastated. I remember feeling even closer to #1 because he let himself be sad and didn’t make me feel like I was being extreme.

Chillin’ Lakeside

We did manage to rally after our 24 hours of grieving and toured a villa. It had the most incredible gardens and hydrangeas that were such an intense and vibrant shade of blue that I can still recall how amazed I was by them.

Lakeside Villa Gardens

I also remember buying a pair of handmade black leather sandals in Bellagio. After just a few days in Italy, I already felt un-fashionable and the shoes helped me feel better. #retailtherapy #Italianstyle